Pocono farmers cultivate markets

Wednesday

Jul 28, 2010 at 12:01 AM

The local farmers and artisans join together to offer the fruits of their labor at the local farmers' markets in Stroudsburg, East Stroudsburg and Mount Pocono. Celebrating its 30th anniversary this summer is the Monroe Farmers' Market on Ann Street, Stroudsburg.

SONYA BILIANIS

Get it while the pickin's good.

Farm-fresh sweet corn straight off the field. Plump and juicy strawberries. Freshly baked homemade apple pie made of only the finest ingredients of handpicked apples from an orchard right here in the Poconos.

The local farmers and artisans join together to offer the fruits of their labor at the local farmers' markets in Stroudsburg, East Stroudsburg and Mount Pocono.

Celebrating its 30th anniversary this summer is the Monroe Farmers' Market on Ann Street, Stroudsburg, every Saturday. To spice things up a bit each weekend, the market will host special events, including cooking demos, chef competitions, cholesterol screening by Pocono Medical Center and even a coffee cupping with Mary Tellie of Electric City Roasting Co.

From the farm straight to the fork, "some local chefs will be cruising the market to see what is in season to make a demo market-fresh meal," said Elisa Tongg Weiler, public relations for Monroe Farmers' Market.

Why shop at a farmers' market? "Let me seduce you," she said.

The farmers' market has much more to offer than raw fruits and veggies. Have you ever tasted corn cob jelly from Dutch Hill Preserves of Canadensis?

"It smells like buttered corn, but tastes like honey. It's so unique paired with a cracker or on a special sandwich of ham and brie cheese. Their bread and butter pickles are just excellent, without the high-fructose corn syrup," Weiler said.

How about a coffee cupping, which is similar to a wine tasting, but just for coffee? The Electric City Roasting Co., obsessed with roasting the perfect coffee bean, has a coffee paring for all coffee connoisseurs. "Who would have thought of a coffee sampling paired with venison tenderloin or trout fish? It's just delicious," said Weiler.

If coffee isn't your first choice in beverages, Sal Vito of Pocono Limited Winery will tempt you with the winery's award-winning wines, infused with cherry and black raspberry and aged in French oak.

The winery's complete line of organic wines, ice wines and liquors are all derived from apples and are sulfite-free. "The farmers' market is a great way for the local artisans to showcase their craft and for local shoppers to enjoy a higher grade of product," said Vito.

Is your mouth watering yet? With a plethora of produce to choose from, don't forget the sweets. Visit Margie's Baked Goods. Offering sweet breads such as banana, blueberry, poppy seed and almond twists, marketgoers can also choose from a variety of pies and miniature cheesecakes. "Our pies are baked daily and not turned out the following week. The quality and freshness can't be beat," said Marjorie Collins of Stroudsburg. "Apple pies and apple turnovers are always a big hit."

In a society filled with genetically modified produce riddled with pesticides and fertilizers, the farmers' market offers shoppers a variety of locally grown and harvested fruits and vegetables without the added extras.

"We might not be 'certified organic'; however; we are allowed to say we are pesticide-free gardeners or farmers. The fees involved with being certified by the Department of Agriculture are quite expensive. Some of the vendors are 'Certified Natural,'" explained Cheryl Flaherty-Whitby, owner of Top Crops Produce in East Stroudsburg.

Top Crops can be found at the East Stroudsburg Farmers' Market and Stroudsburg Market stocked with fresh fruits, veggies and baked goods.

"While the strawberries are wrapping it up for the season, in comes the mouth-watering, great, big, fat native highbush blueberries and the early variety of apples," she said. "We also offer a variety of hydroponic lettuces including bok choy, romaine and arugula. My red raspberry crumb cake is to die for," she said.

Freshness counts when it comes to the farmers' market. "All of our produce is picked the morning of or the day before to be sold at the market, and the vendors have fair, reasonable prices compared to the grocery stores," said Flaherty-Whitby.

As the season changes, so do the local crops. "Many of the consumers need to realize that corn is not available in the spring and tomatoes do not grow in the winter. You will not find lemons or bananas growing in the Poconos. On average, the typical American meal travels from about 3,000 miles away," said Tom Dente of Full Circle Farm in Paradise Township, offering a variety of seasonal veggies at the Mount Pocono Farmers' Market.

The late summer season brings squash, eggplant, cucumbers, corn and peas, but it is never a guarantee. "Our crops depend on many different variables. We consider ourselves multi-farmers in that we plant at least 500 different crops, so if a blight comes along and destroys one crop, we will have something else available," he said.

Keeping their carbon footprint low, Dente and his partner, Jennifer Batista, take pride in their bio-intensive symbiotic farm, but it doesn't end with veggies for Batista. She also sells her handspun yarn made the old-fashioned way from the sheep to the spinning wheel.

The two rules of the farmers' market to be a vendor is the produce must be grown or handmade, and it must be made locally. "No crafts are allowed, and it is not a flea market," said Flaherty-Whitby.

"Vendors are needed for the Mount Pocono Farmers' Market," said Fred Courtright, chairman of the market. "The farmers' market is all about sustainable housing and investing in where you live. The best part is that we are supporting our neighbors and helping out the people in our area," he said.

As a way to give back to the community, this season the farmers from the Monroe Farmers' Market are donating their unsold produce to the new Market Gleaning program. "Volunteers come and collect the food at the end of the day to feed to the hungry in our own community. It is an effective way to feed people nutritious food that is good for them through the Follow Me Foundation, a non-profit committee," said Weiler.

Farmers' markets may have been around forever, but it's the wave of the future. "More and more are becoming interested in agriculture, and there is a resurgence in local craft work. Consumers are disenchanted with the manufactured goods in the country and the food products being produced," said Vito.

Other produce to be found at the markets include locally raised meat, eggs, dairy, honey, herbs, fresh-cut flowers and soaps.